Free Republic

As things now appear, President Bush's latest nominee for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, Janice Rogers Brown, will meet the same fate as Miguel Estrada, the president's last nominee for this court, who was forced to withdraw his name in September. By preventing a floor vote on Estrada through filibuster, the Democrats made confirmation of Estrada impossible, and we can expect them to do the same to Rogers. What is going on here is sad and ironic and it is particularly instructive to examine the racial politics involved. The lives of Janice Rogers Brown and Miguel...

Miller likens judicial obstruction to lynching By Klaus Marre Sen. Zell Miller (D-Ga.) compared the blocking of one of President Bush's judicial nominees, African-American Janice Rogers Brown, to a lynching. After the early dramatics at the beginning of the 30-hour reverse filibuster on President Bush's judicial nominees quickly fizzled, the debate turned out to be high on rhetoric and name-calling but it revealed little that had not been said before. However, as most senators and C-SPAN viewers had turned in for the night, the debate rapidly turned interesting at 2 a.m. when the schedule of speakers, either by luck of...

This morning, we know for sure: the Senate Republicans are serious about President Bush’s judicial nominees. There had been some question. Up until 6 PM last night, all the Majority Leader Bill Frist and his staff had to offer was talk. We heard from the Senator’s senior advisor that Frist had an “itchy trigger finger” to get something done about the nominees being filibustered by his Democrat colleagues. Months ago, they told us to “get ready for hardball.” Even before that, it was “Anything is possible, nothing is off the table.” And so when Frist’s staff told us last week,...

<p>We hope 100 men and women in Washington got a good sleep last night because they aren't likely to catch a lot of ZZZs tonight or tomorrow. They'll be participants in the Senate GOP's plan to stage a 30-hour talkathon on the Democrats' unprecedented filibuster of President Bush's judicial nominees.</p>

<p>The governor's election in Mississippi tomorrow will be the Republicans' first major opportunity to test how much voters care that Democrats are filibustering some of President Bush's judicial nominations.</p> <p>If the issue sticks, Republicans are ready with blocked nominees — several representing the Democratic Party's most crucial constituencies — to use as the faces of what they call "Democratic obstruction" in next year's presidential and senatorial elections.</p>

Republicans are planning to make the president’s judicial nominees and what they view as Democrats' obstructionism a campaign cornerstone in the South. They claim the judicial impasse in the Senate became a campaign issue last cycle and helped Sens. Saxby Chambliss (Ga.), Jim Talent (Mo.), and Norm Coleman (Minn.) to victory. Democrats maintain they are exercising the traditional advise and consent privilege of the Senate. Manuel Miranda, a counsel to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), said Republican gains stemming from voter outrage over the Democrats’ filibusters “was enormous in the last election, but it will be amplified tenfold this...

THE DEMOCRATS have gone where no party ever has: It has become the party whose senators routinely filibuster nominations to the circuit courts of appeals. The obvious intention is to make it harder to confirm a nominee. Indeed, where a simple majority always has sufficed for Senate approval, 60 votes now are necessary, since that is the number of votes needed to break a filibuster and permit an up-or-down vote. Senate Democrats have filibustered three circuit court nominees and promise to block votes on several more. But not until last week did a filibustered nominee finally give up when Miguel...

Latinos across America have received a congressional slap in the face. Having been nominated for the prestigious D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals more than 2 1/2 years ago, Honduran-born Miguel Estrada has recognized where his kind is not wanted. He has withdrawn his nomination. And he withdraws without ever having received an up or down vote before the Senate -- the target of an unprecedented Democrat filibuster. The fact that Senate Democrats would give such back-handed treatment to a man of Estrada's character and achievements screams loud and clear how they really feel about the Hispanic community and our ideals....

Congratulations to my two U.S. senators, Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor of Arkansas. And to Hillary Clinton and Ted Kennedy. And to the whole, solid block of Democrats in the U.S. Senate.You must be very proud. All of you played a key role in blocking the nomination of Miguel Estrada to the federal judiciary. Month after month after month. For more than two years. Until finally he gave up and withdrew his name from consideration.

The following is a after action report from the combined Project21/Coalition for a Fair Judiciary protest held at the headquarters of People for the American Way. We(10 of us)arrrived at the headquarters for People for the American Way at 10 am this morning and after a short speech by me summing the racist treatment of Miguel Estrada by Senate Democrats and how they have violated their oath to the Constitution of the United States. As we protested I noticed that 2 field workers for the PFWA were taking pictures and working the cellphones after about 15 minutes of protesting and...

Dear RNSC, As a fellow Republican and American, I am extremely disappointed in your performance concerning the nomination of Miguel Estrada. It is an outrage that you allowed the hard Left Democrats in the Senate to dictate the entire process. PLEASE, for the sake of our nation, do not allow this to happen to the President's remaining nominees. Grow a spine and stop the fillerbustering!

<p>We failed Miguel Estrada and allowed Senate Democrats to erect a glass ceiling.</p> <p>Not only is this a sad day for Miguel and Laurie Estrada, but we have all let something unfortunate occur in Washington. We allowed the U.S. Senate to erect a "glass ceiling" in our courts--you can do all the right things in America, but if you do not agree with Ted Kennedy and Hillary Clinton, you need not apply as a federal judge. This is the message that Democrats hope minorities, in particular, get from their victory as they succeeded in repelling a talented man, who happens to be Hispanic, from public service. For the hard left, Miguel Estrada was not qualified to be a federal judge because he would not march to their drumbeat.</p>

Project 21 and the Coalition for a Fair Judiciary will hold a rally in front of the offices for People for the American Way, located at 2000 M Street, NW in Washington DC on Monday, September 8th at 10:00 AM EST to protest the appalling and unfair treatment of Miguel Estrada during his nomination to the DC Circuit Court of Appeals. Miguel Estrada was the first Hispanic nominated to the DC Circuit Court and was rated unanimously well qualified by the American Bar Association. Members of the coalition will meet at 9:30 am at Longfellow and Witherspoon Parks located at...

Black, Hispanic Activists to Protest Treatment of Bush Judicial Nominees Liberal Activist Group Cited as Key Player in ³Political Hate Crime² Against Hispanic Candidate For Immediate Release: September 5, 2003 Contact: David Almasi at (202) 371-1400 x106 Members of the African-American leadership network Project 21 will join the Coalition for a Fair Judiciary, Hispanic activists and others in front of the Washington, D.C. offices of People for the American Way at 10:00 am on Monday, September 8, 2003 to protest the group¹s leading role in an ongoing campaign that is denying President George W. Bush of his constitutional right to...

<p>Not only is this a sad day for Miguel and Laurie Estrada, but we have all let something unfortunate occur in Washington. We allowed the U.S. Senate to erect a "glass ceiling" in our courts--you can do all the right things in America, but if you do not agree with Ted Kennedy and Hillary Clinton, you need not apply as a federal judge. This is the message that Democrats hope minorities, in particular, get from their victory as they succeeded in repelling a talented man, who happens to be Hispanic, from public service. For the hard left, Miguel Estrada was not qualified to be a federal judge because he would not march to their drumbeat.</p>

September 5, 2003, 1:00 p.m. By Robert Alt On Thursday, Miguel Estrada asked President Bush to withdraw his nomination as the first Hispanic on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Estrada's nomination had been held up for well over two years. Despite impeccable credentials and a bipartisan majority supporting his confirmation, 45 Democratic senators persisted in a filibuster through seven attempts at cloture. Given his record, why did these Democrats block Estrada's nomination? Put simply, because he is a Hispanic who broke from the party fold. Despite their inevitable protesting to the contrary, it is clear that Ted Kennedy's gang...

Fri September 5, 2003 02:05 PM ET By Thomas Ferraro WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch said on Friday he does not expect other stalled judicial nominees to follow Miguel Estrada's lead and drop their confirmation bids, but "we are always concerned." "I've basically told them, 'Hang in there. We'll do our best to get you through,"' Hatch, a Utah Republican, told Reuters. "Let the process work." Estrada got fed up with the process. After waiting more than two years for a Senate confirmation vote, Estrada asked President Bush on Thursday to withdraw his nomination to the...

Gutless Republicans By Bob Ellis Weekender, September 07 ToogoodReports.com Miguel Estrada, President Bush's eminently qualified judicial nominee for the federal bench, withdrew from consideration for the post of U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit after spending 28 months being stonewalled by petulant Democrats. Mr. Estrada has incidentally received the highest possible rating from the Left- leaning American Bar Association (ABA). Estrada has also argued 15 cases before the Supreme Court. Yet Senate Democrats just couldn't be sure whether or not he was some drooling, Hitler-clone who might disregard the Consitution in favor of his personal political...

"AVICTORY FOR the Constitution, for the nation's judicial system and for the American people," crowed Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) of the decision by Miguel A. Estrada to withdraw as President Bush's nominee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit

Today, the nation lost a great candidate for the federal bench. Miguel Estrada, an inspirational example of the Immigrant's Dream of success in America, withdrew his nomination after spending two years in limbo in the U.S. Senate. Democrats used a fake filibuster SEVENTEEN times to block his nomination, while Republicans sat back and whines incessantly about how it was unfair. The GOP had the chance to get Estrada on the bench. Quite honestly, I don't blame him for withdrawing his name. How would you like it if you were hired for a dream job, and had to wait two years...